PROC 00001 Published On: 02/23/2021
Question: Will all the questions be answered on the website, or just the ones not covered live? And when do you estimate those will be available on the website?
Answer: All questions received during Stakeholder Sessions will be posted to the website. We intend to answer and post as many questions as possible within one week of the Stakeholder Advisory Group meeting and continue to post answers until all questions have been addressed.
PROC 00002 Published On: 02/23/2021
Question: Will DESC send out the model requirements matrix included in the Session I Advisory Group materials? Will there be a follow up meeting to discuss the model selection?
Answer: Yes. We will upload the model requirements matrix in an editable format to the “Stakeholder Materials” section of the Stakeholder website on or around 2/24/21. Also, DESC intends to address Stakeholder feedback as well as our own findings regarding the model capabilities during Stakeholder Advisory Group Session II.
PROC 00003 Published On: 02/23/2021
Question: Will the presentation slides be sent out to Stakeholders after the meeting?
Answer: Yes, all material presented at Stakeholder Advisory Group Sessions will be posted to the “Meeting Presentations and Materials” section of the Stakeholder website.
PROC 00004 Published On: 05/11/2021
Question: Sierra Club requests that the timeline for coal plant retirement studies and energy efficiency programs be included in the next agenda.
Answer: The EE programs will continue to be discussed as inputs to the IRP, but the actual design, modification, and planning of DSM programs will continue to be addressed within DESC’s Energy Efficiency Advisory Group. The coal plant retirement analysis will be included as a topic for Session III of DESC IRP Stakeholder Advisory Group meeting.
PROC 00005 Published On: 12/21/2021
Question: Are there any other current plans, efforts, or projects within DESC that will alter the magnitude of resources available to the system, but are not included in the modeling that has been filed with the Commission or will be shared with Stakeholders?
Answer: No.
PROC 00006 Published On: 12/21/2021
Question: How are we accurately modeling, given the extreme and unprecedented weather we are experiencing, resulting in bitterly cold winters and unseasonably hot summers? Does the system have the ability to respond to changes in capacity needs?
Answer: Our reserve margin study is now about 2 years old, but it does consider the contribution of extreme weather and how much these events contribute to peak load compared to a normal winter peak. We take this into account and set the reserve margin accordingly.
PROC 00007 Published On: 12/21/2021
Question: An all-source RFP is very involved and is an opportunity learn how the market is pricing other resources as well. Your response raises a concern of whether the structure of the RFP will be limiting so DESC will not receive as many responses since it is difficult to define how DESC wants a resource to operate in an RFP and ensure you receive the series you want and need. What is the timeframe to evaluate this?
Answer: The planned All-Source Peaker Replacement RFP process is intended to inform the current need for replacement resources and not to gain a perspective on all new resources that will be considered in future IRPs. We know the services that these existing resources already provide, and we seek to define them neutrally. Technology neutrality is the overarching goal of the RFP development, since DESC would like to evaluate how we can replace the resources effectively. The timeframe to evaluate this will be in early 2022.
PROC 00008 Published On: 03/18/2022
Question: How/why was the Canadys location selected? Were any cases evaluated with ESS or CTs located in or near the Charleston load center?
Answer: The Canadys site formerly hosted a significant amount of generation and there is a large network transmission substation at that location (both at 115 KV and 230 KV voltage levels). The site is also served by the CGT system. DESC did not have enough time to evaluate CTs or any new systems at Williams or somewhere closer. CTs or storage could defer transmission upgrades, but a study would need to be conducted.
PROC 00009 Published On: 03/18/2022
Question: Haven’t the uprates at Jasper and Columbia already occurred? Are they the same uprates that were already in the Modified IRP modeling?
Answer: The uprates are in progress over the past and upcoming outage seasons. They were not in the transmission planning model during the study. These uprates were included in the 2021 IRP Update (Advanced Gas Path upgrades at Jasper and Columbia Energy Center) as were the simple cycle CT replacements at Bushy Park, Parr, and Urquhart. The Urquhart replacements will be subject to the All Source RFP process per the Partial Settlement Agreement in PSC Docket 2021-93-E.
PROC 00010 Published On: 03/18/2022
Question: Are you performing that dispatch in a spreadsheet or in Power World? Are you doing this for both Santee Cooper analyses?
Answer: The dispatch is being conducted in Power World. No.
PROC 00011 Published On: 03/18/2022
Question: What RFP data does DESC intend to use to inform those cost inputs?
Answer: Technology costs provided in the green sheets are based on actual bids and the company’s actual costs of building new generation. DESC may be able to use submissions to the Urquhart RFP depending on the type of resources that are presented. However, it’s doubtful that any new generation cost information from this RFP will be available in time for the Retirement Study or for use in the 2022 IRP Update.
PROC 00012 Published On: 04/20/2022
Question: Would the next TIA results be incorporated into the 2023 IRP?
Answer: This is DESC’s intention, but it depends on when the 2023 IRP will need to be filed.
PROC 00013 Published On: 06/17/2022
Question: Stakeholders are seeking time to reflect on what is and is not working about the stakeholder process and how to ensure it can capture all the important aspects of the analyses DESC is working on before they are completed.
Answer: DESC continues to welcome Stakeholder feedback on the IRP Advisory Group process. Please provide written comments at any time with suggestions on how to improve the Stakeholder process.
PROC 00014 Published On: 06/17/2022
Question: Session VII discussed the Reserve Margin Study that will be incorporated into the 2023 IRP. This is a critical study that will determine the planning reserve margin, resource capacity accreditation, and how portfolios are measured for reliability. Due to the importance of this study, we kindly request this be a focal point of the next stakeholder session.
Answer: DESC is still working toward these goals and will continue to work with Stakeholders on these issues. DESC intends to focus the next Stakeholder Meeting on the 2022 IRP Update, but will provide an update on progress at that meeting. The Company will revisit these topics for more detailed discussion with Stakeholders at future meetings.
PROC 00015 Published On: 06/17/2022
Question: Because of the apparent switch to LT Plan for the 2022 IRP Update, PLEXOS’s capacity optimization module, we would also welcome a discussion of the tunneling and other constraints DESC intends to apply to its analysis.
Answer: DESC understands “tunneling” as the effect of constraints like annual limits on the amount of new resource that can be added in a single model year. DESC believes there are reasonable limits on the pace at which new resources can be added to the system and will discuss this information with Stakeholders in Section VI.